A body found floating in a retention pond Saturday is that of a 26-year-old Hispanic man, the Orange County sheriff's office said.

“He was not a bad person,” said a person close to the victim who did not want to be identified. “He did not deserve this.”

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The body is believed to be the driver of a damaged and submerged Mercedes pulled from a retention pond on Canoe Creek Drive in the Beacon Park neighborhood of Orange County, deputies said. The Mercedes crashed into a fence around 4:30 p.m. Friday before careening into the water, a witness said. Divers said they found the vehicle empty.

The body was found around 3:30 p.m. Saturday, almost 24 hours after the crash.

The unidentified male was involved in some sort of “altercation” with an unknown number of other people, who were inside a different car, before the crash, according to deputies. That vehicle fled the scene and those inside have not been identified. Deputies are treating this as “suspicious” and are working to identify everyone involved.

“Somebody was trying to hurt somebody,” said Johnny Caballero, who lives in the quiet community. “They must have made a wrong turn in here because there’s no other outlet.”

The victim’s name will not be released until the medical examiner makes a positive identification and all next of kin are notified, the sheriff’s office said.

No information about the victim, who is believed to be from Orlando, has been released.

Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Line at 1-800-423-TIPS.